language insights

December 18, 2017

It’s the holidays! What a wonderful time of year…until your uncle asks you about politics; or that little cousin asks when you’re getting married; or your grandma wants to know why you haven’t gotten that promotion yet.

I know what you’re thinking: let’s just avoid these conversations entirely, and Uncle Marvin’s particularly bad breath. But just as you’ll probably never win the one good White Elephant gift, many of these conversations are unavoidable. However, there are ways you can speed them along or soften them up. You can practice ways to pivot the conversation.

At maslansky + partners, we help brands have productive conversations every day, and we’re happy to share our communications strategies with you to help the holidays remain festive!

1. Address the topic, not the specific question.

2. Cite social proof.

3. Pivot towards the person.

So as we head into the holiday season, remember how to pivot: ask questions, cite social proof, and get them to talk about themselves by pivoting towards the person.